Training for alternative skills will be made available to Negrense Overseas Filipino Workers returning from strife-hit Libya and Bharain and earthquake hit Japan and New Zealand, Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. said yesterday.

The retraining will be undertaken through the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, he said.

There will be enough work in the Philippines with proper capital, he said.

The governor said he has put emphasis on agriculture in Negros Occidental because it is labor intensive, and there is money in it.

The Philippines yesterday advised its 31,000 citizens in Bahrain to leave the Gulf state after troops from neighboring countries moved in to help the ruling monarchy quell anti-government protests.

"We are urging 31,000 Filipinos to restrict movements to only those absolutely essential and to voluntarily depart the country," Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Rafael Seguis said.

He said embassy staff in Manama had been in contact with Filipino community leaders there and briefed them on contingency plans.

"We are hopeful the political situation will stabilize, but precautionary measures are in place," he said.

Armed forces from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates rolled into Bahrain on Monday to help the government there deal with pro-democracy protesters.

An estimated nine million Filipinos work abroad, and their dollar remittances have traditionally fuelled the local economy.

Many of these workers are in the Middle East.

Last week, the government also told its 1,400 citizens in Yemen to leave over rising political violence there.

More than half of the 26,000 Filipinos in Libya were also evacuated last month, with the rest opting to stay, officials said.*CPG/AFP

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